Dance With Me
by TammyDevil666
Summary: Takes place in a much nicer season 6, Buffy and Spike have a relationship that is accepted by all of her friends. But just when things are finally going their way, tragedy strikes.


**This idea came to me out of nowhere and I just went with it, thanks to dusty273 for the read through!**

* * *

"Gotcha, how much is that now? Five to two?"

Spike rolled his eyes. "That last bloke completely took me off guard, and I know I bloody got more than two."

Buffy grinned, staking the vampire that she could sense coming at her from behind. "Hmm, I don't even really have super hearing, and yet I could hear him coming a mile away. What was your excuse?"

"All right, you've made your point. I'm just having an off night."

"I've noticed, what's gotten you so distracted lately? Are you still upset that I talked to Angel the other day? He called me, what was I supposed to do, just ignore him?"

Spike shrugged, kicking a rock with his boot. "That's what I would have done. Why does he bloody have to come here now? Where was he when we needed help with Glory? You died and he couldn't even be bothered, Willow went to tell him about your death and what does he do? He spends three fucking months in a monastery. He never even cared to stop by your grave to show his respects. And now that you're back he suddenly decides to pay a visit? I'm not buying that, he's up to something."

Buffy shook her head, wrapping her arms around his waist. "You're cute when you're jealous, but you really don't have to be. We've been together for two months now, nothing Angel does could ever change that. I didn't forget everything you've done for me last year, or how you kept your promise and were there for Dawn when I was gone. You could have left town, but you didn't. You stayed here to help them fight evil, my friends told me how many times you've saved their lives. You're finally accepted by everyone, that's not going to stop just because Angel decides to show up. He just wants to see me in person, probably to make sure I'm not a zombie or something, but for whatever reason, it doesn't matter. I'm your girl now and I always will be, okay? You have nothing to worry about."

Spike let out a relieved sigh. "I know, the ponce just still has a way of bringing out my insecurities. I'm working on it."

She smiled. "That's all I ask."

* * *

"Spike, I'm tired, we've been out here for hours. It's time to go home."

He shook his head. "Not until I even the score, come on, there has to be a few more baddies we haven't killed yet."

Buffy was about to respond, but never got the chance at the sight of the huge scaly creature that was headed in their direction. "Well, you may just get your chance."

Spike backed up into her. "That's not exactly what I had in mind."

Buffy rubbed her hands together in anticipation. "Whoever kills the ugly demon gets to be the other's slave for an entire week."

"Oh, you're on, Slayer."

The battle began, but no matter how many blows they delivered to the demon, neither was able to get the upper hand.

Buffy was knocked to the ground, shaking the dizziness away, she saw that the demon was about to strike Spike with his huge claws. Without putting any thought to her actions, she bounded to her feet and rushed over to her boyfriend, pushing him out of the way, just as the claws came down on her and ripped her across the back. She cried out at the sharp pain, meeting the ground once again.

Spike roared once he realized what was going on, attacking the demon with everything he had. He grabbed the creature's neck and twisted his head right off, dropping the remains as the head and body soon disintegrated into nothing. He kneeled down to Buffy's side, lifting her shirt to see the bloody gash on her delicate skin. "Love, are you okay?"

"Ugh, what hit me?"

He smiled, helping her to stand up. "I think I'll wait for you to recover first before I tell you what your slave duties are."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Thanks ever so."

Spike guided her out of the cemetery, silently praying that she was really okay.

* * *

She was burning up, throwing the covers off of her body and rushing to the bathroom, only to empty all of the contents from her belly into the toilet. The room was spinning once she finished as she rested her head against the cool bathtub. Buffy screamed when the burning on her back got worse, it was as if someone was setting her on fire. She vaguely sensed when Spike and Dawn came into the room, her boyfriend ushering her terrified sister right back out and dropping down to her side. She felt him wrap his arms around her, but the pain was too much and she soon passed out.

* * *

When Buffy awoke, it was to the sound of frantic voices. She was in her bed, lying on her stomach with an ice pack on her back. She was still too dizzy to move, smiling slightly when Spike came into the room and sat beside her, brushing the hair out of her face. He always knew just how to make her feel better.

"You gave us all quite a scare, love."

"But it's not over, is it? This isn't just a regular scratch, I can feel it. It's like something is crawling inside of me, it burns so much. I know the others are here, what did they find out?"

Spike ran his fingers through his hair, thinking of what to tell her. "You're right, it's not a normal scratch. Giles researched the demon, once I pointed it out to him in one of his books. The claws hold a venom that is paralyzing to vampires, but I only would have probably been incapacitated for a few days before it wore off. If a human were to get scratched, they would have died instantly. Because you're a little more than human, it takes longer to go through your system."

Buffy felt tears in her eyes, knowing what he was getting at. "I'm dying, aren't I?"

He felt tears of his own, quickly wiping them away. "Giles said you most likely have a week, give or take. But I'm not going to let that happen, all right? They're researching nonstop until they find a cure, and there will be a cure. I won't lose you, not again. That's just not an option."

It was nice of him to have hope, but Buffy could feel the life slowly slipping away from her. "How long was I out?"

"Ten hours, the longest of my existence. Peaches is here now, he's helping with the research. You'll be as good as new in no time," he said, placing a kiss to the top of her head as she drifted back off to sleep.

* * *

Two days went by with still no luck, they practically went through Giles' entire collection, but Spike wasn't about to give up.

"We have to look again."

Giles took his glasses off to clean them. "We have looked over every book several times, there is no cure."

Spike shook his head. "No, I won't accept that, the Council of Wankers has to know something."

"I've tried calling them, but you could imagine how much help they were. It pains me to say this, but it doesn't look like there's anything we can do for her."

The bleached vampire glanced at all of the defeated faces around him, Willow and Xander were trying to keep it together, while Dawn was huddled in a corner crying her eyes out. Angel was brooding as usual, but Spike wasn't ready to call it quits. He would hit the demon world, ask around, someone had to know something. "I'm going out, this isn't over. There is a bloody cure for this thing and I'm going to find it."

Angel placed a hand on his shoulder before he could leave. "Spike, I know what you plan on doing, but it won't help. That demon isn't even from this dimension, you won't find anything."

Spike turned a glare on his grandsire, shrugging his arm off. "So, what? That's it, we just do nothing? You don't know what it's like to watch the love of your life die. You weren't here, I'm the one who watched as Buffy fell from the tower. In the fucking sunlight where I couldn't get to her, and then I had to watch as she was put in the ground. Where the hell were you? If you think for one second that I'm just going to stand here and do nothing as she dies again, you don't know anything about me." He stormed out of the house then, not looking back once. This was far from over.

* * *

It took until the sun was about to rise for him to return home, noticing that the downstairs was empty, he figured everyone finally left and that Dawn was in bed. Spike headed upstairs to Buffy's room to find her in the same position she was in hours earlier. He went to her side, taking her in his arms as he watched her sleep. Her color was pale and she was still a lot hotter than she should be, the tears came before he could stop them.

"I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't have much luck tonight."

She opened her eyes, giving him a small smile. "You did all that you could. I love how hard you're trying, but you don't need to anymore. I just want you with me right now."

He nodded, kissing her lips sweetly. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I'm not afraid to die," she whispered a minute later. "I know what's waiting for me on the other side. I know that I'll be okay, it just breaks my heart that I'll never get to see Dawn grow up. That I won't get to be with you, I was finally happy with my life. I finally had everything I've always wanted; it just sucks that I couldn't have it longer."

Spike shook his head, tears streaming down his face. "It's not bloody fair, it should have been me. The demon came after me, not you. I should have listened when you said you wanted to go home, instead I had to get cocky."

"I don't regret what I did, not for a second. This isn't your fault. I need to tell you something while I still can. I've wanted to say it for a while now, but you know I'm not very good with words." She took in a deep breath before continuing. "I love you, Spike. I think I have since you let Glory beat you up without revealing the truth about Dawn, that's when I knew I could always trust you. I knew you were special."

He brought her hand to his lips, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. "I've loved you since the first time I saw you. You were dancing with your mates at the Bronze, so young and full of life. I was captured from that very first moment. I never told anyone, but I dreamt later that night that we were dancing together. You took me in your arms and told me that you would never let go, and we just swayed all night to the music that only we could hear. I just wish I would have realized how much I loved you back then, I would have kicked Dru to the curb a lot sooner and got you away from Peaches before he hurt you. I'm glad we were given this chance now."

"That's a beautiful dream. Could you take me somewhere tomorrow? There's something I need to do."

Spike nodded. "I'll take you anywhere your heart desires."

Buffy smiled, resting her head against his chest as sleep claimed her once again.

* * *

Spike got Buffy dressed and gently picked her up since she wasn't able to walk herself. He carried her down the stairs, not saying anything to her mates as he left the house, heading all the way to the cemetery. He found the tombstone he was looking for, setting her down in front of it.

"Do you need to be alone?"

Buffy shook her head. "No, I want you here," she told him, grasping his hand in hers. Buffy turned back to the grave, tracing the name with her fingers. "Hey, Mom, it's been a while. I guess I'll be seeing you again sooner than we thought, I hope you're not disappointed. I just wanted to say that you were right about Spike all along, he's truly amazing. I don't know where I would be right now if it wasn't for him. Thank you for telling me to give him a chance, you always were a good judge of character. I should have remembered that."

Spike was surprised, but decided to remain silent. This was about her.

She kissed the tips of her fingers, tracing her mother's name once again. "I love you."

Spike noticed her shiver, taking his duster off to drape around her tiny frame. "We should go, love, it's too cold out here for you." He picked her up without waiting for a response, carrying her back to the house to see that her friends were still searching through Giles' collection, even though he now knew it was pointless. He put her in bed when they reached her room, hoping that their time spent at the cemetery wasn't too much for her. Spike was distressed when he first came to Sunnydale with an injured Drusilla, he was worried that he would never be able to cure her, but that worry and fear was nothing compared to what he was going through now. He gazed down at his sleeping beauty, wondering what he would ever do without her. Spike realized he dozed off when there was a knock on the door, only to see Angel standing there. "Did you find something?"

"No, but I may have an idea. Could we talk out here?"

Spike moved away from Buffy, being careful not to wake her as he followed Angel out of the room. "What is it?"

"I hate to say this, and I wouldn't if there was any other choice, but have you thought about turning her?"

Spike's eyes widened, that being the last thing he expected. "Are you bloody crazy? Why would you even suggest that? I don't want Buffy as a vampire, and she would hate me forever if I even thought of turning her. That's not happening. As much as I hate the thought of losing her, I would rather let her go to the peace she deserves over keeping her with me as something she loathes. She'd never say it, but she would always resent me for it."

Angel nodded. "I guess there's nothing more we can do for her. You may not believe me, but I am sorry about this, Spike. I see how much she means to you, if there was a way to save her, you know I would do everything in my power to come up with it."

Spike knew he was being sincere and with a nod, headed back inside to Buffy. It was hard for him to leave her for even a second, every moment was precious. The night went by like any other, when Spike was suddenly awakened by a thought. He shook Buffy gently, waiting for her to peer up at him. "We could do a mutual claim, I don't know why I didn't think of it before."

Buffy's eyes widened, but he wasn't finished.

"Just hear me out, a claim is all about dominance and control, but a mutual claim is about love and acceptance. Our lives will be linked together, as long as I'm alive, you'll be alive. The poison won't be able to take you from me, you'll get most of the traits I do. Enhanced strength, even more than usual, enhanced hearing, we'll be able to sense each other's thoughts. And I will get some of the traits from you, I could still be killed by stakes, but sunlight will no longer be an issue and I won't need as much blood to survive. You would still be human, just with a longer life expectancy. I would never turn you into a vampire because I know you would hate it, this is the next best choice, but it's completely up to you. It's a forever deal, Buffy, the only way for you to die would be if I were to die, and I don't see that happening any time soon. It could be a hundred years and you would still look the way you do now. I know it means watching your friends get on with their lives and eventually grow old and die while you stay the same, but I guess you need to decide if that's something you could live with. If you decide that you're ready to go back to Heaven, I will support you no matter what. I know being with me for all eternity is asking a lot, we haven't even been together that long. If this isn't something you want..."

She cut him off by pressing a finger to his lips. "I love you. We would have only needed to be together for a week and I still would have said yes. Let's do it."

Spike smiled, cupping her cheek and bringing his mouth to hers in a tender embrace. "You won't regret this, love."

She returned his smile. "I know."

* * *

"Are you certain this will work?" Giles wondered.

Spike shrugged. "I don't see why it wouldn't, but you lot should take a walk. We'll need privacy."

Angel ushered everyone out of the house, surprisingly no one had any complaints.

Spike could see how weak Buffy was getting when he got back to her room, they had to do this fast. She was naked and shivering, he went to her side and covered her up with the blanket. "We don't have to do it this way, love, if you're not up to it."

She shook her head. "I want to."

Spike couldn't argue with that, he removed his clothing and got on top of her, stroking her inner folds with his fingers to get her nice and wet. He wanted this to go as easily for her as possible.

Buffy gasped, arching her back to give him better access.

When Spike felt that she was good and ready, he slipped his fingers out to be replaced by his cock, slowly pushing inside of her drenched center. He groaned at the wonderful sensation, it had been far too long.

"Spike, please," Buffy moaned in his ear.

Spike was never one to deny his lady what she wanted. He gazed down into her beautiful eyes, it was now or never. Brushing the hair out of her face, he lowered his head to her neck, nibbling her throat with blunt teeth before his fangs came forth as he took two strong pulls of her blood. He closed the wound with his saliva, whispering in her ear, "blood of my blood, you're mine for all eternity."

Buffy gasped at the new feelings that surged through her, but they were only halfway done. "Yours," she muttered, biting his neck as hard as she could until the blood filled her mouth, then responded, "blood of my blood, you're mine for all eternity."

Spike felt everything in that moment, it was almost complete. "Yours, I'm yours for now and ever. I've been yours for as long as I can remember."

Buffy felt tears in her eyes at his soft words, it was finally done. She felt and saw everything, from Spike's human life to his years with Drusilla, coming to Sunnydale and seeing her for the first time. It was exactly as he said, the love was there since the beginning.

Spike hugged her closer to his body as she sobbed against his chest, he was worried that it would be too much for her, but this was something she needed to know. He kissed the top of her head, feeling tears of his own. "I love you."

"You always have," Buffy replied once she calmed down.

He wiped her tears away with his thumb, gracing her with a smile. "How do you feel, sweetheart? Besides the obvious."

"I feel good, stronger, I think it worked. I don't feel the poison coursing through my body anymore."

Spike sighed in relief, kissing her once again. "That's the best news I've heard in a while. We'll wait a bit to tell your mates, I just want you all to myself for a little while longer."

Buffy had no complaints with that, gasping when he drove his cock further into her. With all the excitement, she didn't even realize he was still buried inside of her. "Fuck, Spike, so good."

He knew she could handle anything he was willing to give now, taking his cock out and slamming it back inside her pussy. She always felt so bloody amazing, like warm velvet. "That's it, baby, squeeze me just like that. There is much to be said about Slayer muscles."

She laughed, doing just that. Buffy raked her nails down his back, possibly leaving half moon marks in the process, but he never complained. She threw her head back as he pounded her harder, yelling out her release a second later, Spike following right behind her. He lay there panting on top of her, which was weird for a vampire, but she imagined everything would be different now. "Can we visit Mom again later? I wanna go when the sun comes up, maybe I'll get to see if you actually freckle."

Spike chuckled. "We can do whatever you want. I hear the beach is a good spot. I've never been before, not even as a boy."

"Oh, we're so going, everyone should visit the beach at least once in their life. You were so deprived," she claimed.

"That I was, but I predict a lot of new adventures with you. Do you think you can handle it?"

Buffy grinned, biting his earlobe lightly as she said, "I'm game."

"Good, now, let's talk about your slave wages."


End file.
